


Return

by ScarletInWonderland



Category: Lore Olympus (Webcomic)
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-03
Updated: 2019-10-05
Packaged: 2020-11-22 19:44:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20879666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScarletInWonderland/pseuds/ScarletInWonderland
Summary: **Takes place after Episode 76 of Lore Olympus**It had been two months since he was last here; two months since Minthe attacked him in the hallway; two months since Hecate encouraged him to take some time out; and two months since he last saw Persephone. It was time to return to work, and just in time for the Intern final project presentations too...





	1. Return

Hades released a deep, lingering sigh as he turned off the car engine. He steadied his hands on the steering wheel – the tightness of the leather driving gloves strangely comforting. It had been two months since he was last here; two months since Minthe attacked him in the hallway; two months since Hecate encouraged him to take some time out; and two months since he last saw Persephone.

He was feeling surprisingly confident this morning as he brewed his coffee in the kitchen. Now that he was here, idling in his personal parking bay, the all too familiar sense of dread had creeped back in, like a weight in his chest.

_What will people say? _

_What will people think? _

_Would they have even noticed that I haven't been around? _

Probably not, and to be honest he didn’t really care about what most people thought. Most of his employees went about their daily business without any interaction with the King of The Underworld; heck, some had never even met him. There would only be a small number of employees that would know he hadn’t been around, and only a select few that would know why. Hecate had seen to that; that was one of her specialties after all, and by Zeus, she was good at it. He knew that Underworld Corp was in good hands with Hecate at the helm.

He gathered himself and cleared his head of any lingering thoughts.

“Time to go to work"

_\----_

It was only when the elevator doors opened that Hades realized he had been holding his breath. He didn’t know what to expect when the doors opened. Obviously not the red-haired nymph who had been stationed outside of his office for decades. He was glad that she wasn’t here, but he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t a little sad. He never intended for things to end up this way, but here he was.

His thoughts wandered to their last conversation – the one where he finished it. She got angry of course. It was expected, so he was as prepared as he could be to face the full brunt of her anger. She was angry that her apology hadn’t yielded better results. Angry that her attempt to seduce him one last time hadn’t worked. He left her not-so-silently seething as he walked out of the apartment, and out of the relationship. She had continued to text and phone him over the next couple of weeks, but he never responded and sent her straight to voicemail. He felt bad ghosting her, but Hecate had offered to deal with her when it came to moving her out of the apartment. Hecate had done a fine job as he hadn’t heard anything from Minthe since.

He approached the purple haired nymph who was now sat at the reception to his office. She rose from her chair and walked out from behind the desk as he closed in on her.

_“_Good morning, sir. Welcome back. My name is Aegina. Hecate is waiting for you in your office”

Hades smiled and nodded at the nymph, then made his way towards his office. He paused for a moment, his hand rested on the door handle. Aegina thought she heard him mutter something under his breath before he opened the door and stepped over the threshold.

“Hades! How nice of you to join me” Hades thought he could hear a grin in Hecate's voice. Her usual stern tone was laced with something else, something upbeat. “I’ve poured you a coffee.”

Hecate gestured towards the steaming mug of coffee that was sat on the table. Hades took off his coat and placed on a nearby hat stand, and then sat down on the leather couch facing Hecate.

"We have a lot to catch up on, but that can wait. First of all, I have prepared the Intern Presentation portfolios for you.”

He eyed the stack of manilla folders on his desk. He had forgotten that today was the final project submission for the interns. He had never really given much thought to the intern projects in the past. Each year the interns are provided with a dilemma that they need to try and find a solution for. He would usually look over the paperwork and provide some generic feedback, whilst Hecate would attend the actual presentations and quiz the interns on their projects which could be terrifying depending on her mood. It was an opportunity for commendable interns to stand out amongst their peers, and for some, had been the first step towards full time employment.

“Oh-yes of course…I’ll have them ready for you for tomorrow.”

“Also, I want you to come along to the presentations. I think it will give you something specific to focus as a starting point for your return to work.”

He stirred at the request, and tried his best to curb the corner of his lips as they formed into a smile. It would give him a good reason to see Persephone. A fully work sanctioned reason to see her. “Ok, can’t argue with that”

“Great. They’ll be taking place in Conference Room B after lunch. Try and have a read over the portfolios beforehand if you can. In the meantime, We should head down to the Library of Souls and see how things are progressing.”

Hades nodded. “Oh, and Hecate…Thank you for everything”

She rose steadily from the couch and nodded in Hades’ direction. He was sure he saw something twinkle in her eye. 

“Don’t thank me yet…”

_\----_

Hades bustled in the corner of the elevator as the doors opened onto a large marble columned corridor. Hecate stepped out and Hades followed.

He had always liked the Library. It was silent and serene. The echo of their footsteps the only sound in the entire floor. It was eerily quiet. They made their way past the offices of the Library employees as they headed towards the great dome of the Library itself. Each employee had their own office space, identified by a plaque on the door bearing their name.

As they made their way towards the Library, one of the name plaques grabbed Hades attention – Persephone. He knew that she would be based down here. He subconsciously slowed down as he neared the office. The door was slightly ajar and a beam of harsh light shone out of the room. Hades was glad that Hecate was walking ahead so she couldn’t see the smile that transformed his face. He tried to discreetly peer inside as they walked past but was stopped in his tracks by what he saw inside.

The room was empty. Completely bare. No furniture. Nothing to suggest the demure, petite Goddess had ever been here. Nothing but the name plaque. Hades could feel that familiar sense of dread like a stone in his chest.

_Of course, she wouldn’t be here. She obviously realized that there is nothing for her here and has returned to Olympus. I’m not surprised really. If I was her, I would get as far away from here as I possibly could._

Hades’ thoughts swirled. When was the last time he had spoken with Persephone? A couple of weeks ago? He had sent her a picture of Cordon Bleu and Russell playing in the garden earlier this week, and she had responded with a series of dog and smiley face emojis. They hadn’t actually spoken much over the last two months, but whenever they did it was light-hearted and genuine. He never spoke about what happened, and she never asked. He knew she wouldn’t judge him for it. It was quite cathartic really.

Hades was confused. They never spoke about work, and there was no indication that she had moved on from Underworld Corp.

He was brought back to reality by a gentle nudge to his shoulder. The expression that Hecate wore was one of concern.

“We should go.”


	2. Absence

“Well everything’s going as well as expected.”

Hecate’s brow furrowed. “How about we go for a coffee?”

Hades arched an eyebrow and knew by her tone that she wasn’t asking. Hecate pressed the button for the ground floor, and the elevator doors closed. They stood in silence for a couple of floors until they reached level 3 when the doors opened and a man carrying an assortment of fabrics and art and craft supplies piled high in his arms entered the elevator muttering under his breath.

“Dammit, Hermes! Why have you got me running your errands for you?”

Hades looked over at Hecate who returned his confused look with a grin.

“Hello Thanatos”

“Oh. Hi, Boss. Hecate. Would you mind pressing the button? My hands are a bit full.”

“Of course. Helping out at the festival?” Hecate tried her best to hide her smirk.

“Ha. Not by choice, no, but I owe Hermes a favour”

The elevator pinged as they reached the ground floor. Thanatos almost fell out as the doors opened, but managed to steady himself and the mountain of craft supplies in his arms.

“Bye for now.” 

Hades and Hecate stepped out of the lift into the foyer of Tower 1. It was unusually busy for this early in the morning, but naturally the throng parted as Hades strode forward.

“Festival?”

“Ah, well it’s Anthesteria”

The ‘Dionysion Anthesteria’, as it was also known. If it involved Dionysus then you could be sure that the mortals would be having a great time. How could Hades forget the only festival to openly commemorate the dead? It was an interesting festival to say the least. Not only was it the time of the year that the spirits of the dead wonder the earth, it also marked the beginning of Spring. He always felt it was an odd pairing. 

“But we’ve never really celebrated Anthesteria before.”

“That is true, but…” Hecate continued to explain why Underworld Corp were now celebrating Anthesteria, but Hades paid her no attention. His eyes had been drawn to a pink blur that he saw out of the corner of his eye. He looked again, but whatever, or whoever it was had disappeared out of sight. 

“…and that’s why we are celebrating it. Hades?”

“Hmmm. Oh, I thought I saw something. Never mind”

_\---_

It was almost lunch time when Hades and Hecate returned to his office.

“Let’s order something in and look over the intern portfolios.” Hades buzzed his new PA and asked her to arrange lunch. It was odd not hearing snide or rude comments. It actually sounded as if Aegina enjoyed her job.

“She’s very good, Hades. She was originally the Project Manager of the Lugentes Campi and did an exemplary job, I will say. I picked her myself. Basically, she’s been running interference for you for the past two months.”

Hecate walked over to the desk and picked up the pile of manila files that she had sorted earlier.

“Ok, so let’s split them in half. That way we’ll get through them before the presentations”

“What was this year’s theme?” Hades enquired.

“Employee well-being. What can we at Underworld Corp do to promote positive employee well-being?”

Hades groaned. He knew what to expect from this question. Casual Fridays. Weekend Residentials. Staff Karaoke. And he was right, none of the portfolios provided anything revolutionary. One intern did suggest more plants in the office. He could get behind this, and he knew a little pink Goddess that he could consult on the matter. He realized at that point he hadn’t seen Persephone’s portfolio, and concluded that it must have been in Hecate’s pile. Hades sat his pile aside.

“May I?” He gestured towards Hecate’s pile of portfolios.

“Of course” Hades grabbed the pile and sat them on his lap. He deliberately leafed through the slim manila folders looking for the one that belonged to the Goddess of Spring, but it wasn’t in Hecate’s pile either. He looked at the pile of files that were now strewn across the couch.

**THUD.**

Hades jumped at the sound from across the table. He looked up to find that Hecate had placed a large binder on the table which was bigger than the pile of portfolios combined. He knew who it belonged to purely from the floral design on the cover.

“Overachiever?” Hades queried with a smirk.

“You say overachiever, I say diligent and exemplary worker”

____

Hades and Hecate made their way down to Conference Room B for the presentations. Disappointed that he never had time to read Persephone’s portfolio, he was hopeful that he’d get to see her at the presentation. Besides, Hecate had reassured him that her portfolio is one of the best she’s seen.

The room fell into a hushed silence as Hades and Hecate entered. There was some confused muttering from of the interns.

_Why is Hades here? He doesn’t normally come along to these…_

“Please be seated everyone.” Hecate walked to the farthest end of the conference room where the projector and laptop were set up, whilst Hades took a seat at the furthest end of the table directly facing the screen. He looked around the room. Some of the faces he recognized, some he didn’t. However, the one face that he did want to see, wasn't in the room.

“Ok, shall we make a start? Aeneas you’re up first”

Hades zoned out. This had been a waste of time. Of the 5 interns who had delivered their presentations so far, 2 of them had suggested introducing fika style tea breaks, whilst another had suggested a monthly pub quiz to encourage teamwork and comradery. One even suggested that Hades give up his office and enter the typing pool. He can’t recall what the other intern had suggested as his mind was evidently elsewhere, but it surely couldn't have been that thought provoking.

_Get your shit together, Hades_

“Thank you, Tomaes. If you would take your seat, please.”

As Hecate invited the petrified intern to sit down, the door at the rear of the room opened and the scent of meadow flowers wafted in from the corridor. All heads turned as the Goddess of Spring entered the room. Hades was thankful that he had sat right at the back of the room so she couldn’t see him or the dumbfounded look he was wearing. He composed himself and looked around only to see the same expression on everyone’s face – well, everyone except Hecate who just stared at him with a gentle grin.

Persephone looked exquisite; mesmerizing even. She wore a gown of layered billowy soft fabrics in various shades of pink, blue and grey. As she walked through the room the material looked like it was floating. Her hair was cropped in her signature pixie cut with pink and blue flowers scattered throughout. As she walked by Hades realized that she was wearing a pair of matching butterfly wings, and that she was in fact dressed as a butterfly.

“Ah, Persephone! You made it just on time. I trust Hermes and Thanatos have the festivities under control?”


	3. Distraction

She opened her eyes and let go of the breath she was holding. The stark light surrounding the mirror gave her pink skin a luminescent, sickly glow.

_You’ve got this, Persephone._

She released one deep sigh as she picked up the handbag sat beside the sink basin, then turned and headed towards the door of the toilets, and out into the foyer. Hermes was still standing outside waiting for her, although he appeared to have attracted the attention of two nymphs who were giggling intently. He visibly perked up as Persephone stepped through the door and said his goodbyes to the nymphs who were now glaring at her.

“All good? Thanatos should be here soon” He said with a grin across his face.

“It’s really good of him to help out.” Persephone said with genuine surprise and delight as she bent down to fill up her cup at the water cooler. “Who would be a better fit than the God of Death himself?!”

“Oh, yes! He was delighted when I asked him to be part of the festival.” Persephone missed the comic tone in his voice. “Ah, there he is!”

Hermes turned to face towards the elevator as a harassed and agitated Thanatos, arms full of fabrics and supplied, almost fell out. Persephone skipped forward to help him, but she stumbled when she caught sight of who exited the elevator behind him.

_Hades._

She hadn’t seen him in almost two months, although she had desperately wanted to. Hecate had suggested that Persephone give him some space – even though she wasn’t sure why. He must have told Hecate that she was pestering him. He was her boss now after all: things should be professional between them. So, she did just that.

Of course, that didn’t mean they couldn’t have the occasional phone call, and he did text her sometimes too. Whenever they did speak she made a point of keeping it light and breezy. She wanted to share so much of what had happened over the past couple of months, from the cute dog toy that she saw in the supermarket, to the last run in she had with Apollo, but she knew it wasn’t a good idea. Her boss wouldn’t want to hear about that. So, she did as Hecate had advised and focused on other things. Her college work and her final intern project provided distraction enough. 

She watched as Hades and Hecate stepped into the foyer. She was thankful that the foyer was busier than usual – perhaps he wouldn’t see her. The crowd parted as he strode towards the main doors, followed closely by Hecate.

Her eyes followed his every move, and she felt herself being drawn towards him. Like a moth to the flame. For a moment there was only the two of them; the busyness of the foyer hushed into a distorted silence. But she was abruptly brought back to reality by Hermes’ firm yet gentle grip on her left arm. He eyed her curiously. The silence was washed away as quickly as it appeared, and the truth of her situation hit her.

_Why today? Why?! Of all days! __Ok. Calm down. You need to focus up. Today is too important to get distracted. _

“Come on. We should get going.” Hermes quickly lead her to the doors on the furthest side of the foyer where Thanatos was now ambling.

She risked one look behind her, only to see that Hades had stopped in the middle of the foyer and was staring intently in the direction of the water cooler.

\---

Her office in Tower 2 was much bigger than the office she had in Tower 1, and made it easier to focus on her final intern project. She was surprised at how keen HR were in her project. What had originally meant to be a pilot session for a select department within the corporation had turned into an organization wide event. Hermes was more than happy to help out, and somehow he had convinced Thanatos to join them. She was also thankful that Hecate had removed her from shade co-ordinating duties. This allowed her to focus entirely on her preparing for today’s festivities. It was Pithoigia; the first day of Anthesteria after all.

She remembered the first meeting with HR. She didn’t know why she was summoned but she had the distinct impression that the HR Manager had it in for her. She was questioned as to why the Goddess of Spring would want, or need, an internship in Underworld Corp, especially since the current rotation of interns had already been in placement for almost three months. She was continuously reminded that she would be given no leniencies or extensions and would need to catch up with the other interns. She was quizzed on her qualifications and credentials. They even queried the appropriateness of her relationship with the King of the Underworld. Hecate visited later that day to apologise for HR’s inquisition and disrespect; she may be an intern but she was a Goddess after all. Hecate reassured her that the misunderstanding had now been rectified. Now that Persephone thought about it that was the last time she ever saw that faun.

There was a gentle knock at the door.

“Are you ready yet?” Hermes asked as he opened the door.

“Just about.”

Persephone adjusted her butterfly wings and turned to face Hermes. He had changed into his Mortal Realm garbs and was readjusting his winged headpiece in the mirror.

“Nervous?”

“Just a bit. How do I look?”

“You look gorgeous as usual.”

“Oh, Hermes.” Persephone blushed, and hid her smile. “It doesn’t look too over the top?”

She wiggled her hips which sent the swathes of layered fabrics swimming through the air. 

“No, you definitely look the part. Eros did a great job!”

Persephone recalled Eros frolicking with delight when she’d tried on the dress that he had made for her. He’d said he designed it specially to enhance her best features, but Persephone wasn’t too sure which features he was referring to. He also made a comment about how it was probably a good thing that Hades wouldn’t be about to see it, because she’d probably not get the full use of the dress. He winked at that, but she wasn’t sure why.

“We shouldn’t keep Thanatos waiting.”

Hermes followed Persephone out of the office and snickered at the handwritten name plaque that was sellotaped to the office door. It read_ Persephone _and was adorned with doodles of flowers and butterflies.

\---

“Well, that went easier than expected, and it looks almost real.”

“It is real, Thanatos.”

“Wait. You actually made a real grove with real trees and everything?”

“Yes. Shoot! I better go if I’m going to make the presentation on time.” Persephone turned to face Hermes who was busy inspecting one of the trees. “Are you ok getting started? I shouldn’t be too long. Hecate gave me permission to leave when I am finished because HR have so much riding on this.”

“No pressure then.” Thanatos said, stony faced.

Persephone smiled in return. “No pressure. I won’t be long.”

She turned and made her way out of the hall space past the newly birthed trees and plants. Hecate had agreed to let them use one of the empty floors in Tower 2 for the project, of course, it did mean turning the entire floor into a forest. She had done it once before and was sure she could do it again – under different circumstances of course.

As she crossed the foyer and headed out onto the street that separated Tower 2 and Tower 1, she choose to ignore the stares and glances from passers-by. She had somewhere to be so she couldn’t get distracted. She headed straight into Tower 1 and towards the elevator, casting a side way glance to the water cooler where she’d been earlier. She held her breath as the elevator doors opened, hopeful that Hades might step out, but of course he didn’t. She let out a disappointed sigh as she stepped in.

_Of course, he’s not here. He’ll be in his office or in a meeting or doing whatever the King of the Underworld does. He is a very busy man after all, with more important things to do than check up on an intern. Focus up, Persephone. You can’t get distracted! _

The elevator pinged as it reached the correct floor. Persephone stepped out, and looked at the direction signs on the wall.

“Conference Room B…Conference Room B- ah, this way.”

She made her way along the corridor to the end of the hall where she was met with a set of double doors, and a plaque that read _Conference Room B_. She peered through the strip of glass on the door and listened in as an intern concluded their presentation.

“Thank you, Tomaes. If you would take your seat, please.”

Persephone opened the door as the Tomaes made his way to his seat. She could feel everyone looking at her, their eyes boring into her.

_Oh, yeah. I’m dressed as a butterfly…_

She steeled herself and kept walking.

Hecate was intently focused on something at the back of the room, wearing an expression that Persephone couldn’t quite read. They turned to face each other as she strode forward.

“Ah, Persephone! You made it just on time. I trust Hermes and Thanatos have the festivities under control?”

“Yes. Well. Hopefully. Thank you for waiting for me.”

“No problem at all. I know HR are very keen that today go without a hitch. Please make your way to the front.”

She made her way to the front as instructed, and turned to face the screen. She pulled a USB out of a small leather pouch Eros had hidden amongst the layers of fabric, and inserted it into the laptop. When her presentation was up on the big screen, she looked towards Hecate who nodded in return.

“Hi everyone, for my intern project I’ll be-“

She choked on her sentence and stumbled as her eyes met the widened eyes of the God who sat at the far end of the table. It was too late, she could already feel the crimson heat rising up from her torso.

_Hades._


End file.
